750725 - Lecture SB 06.01.44 - Los Angeles

Lectures by Date, 1975

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

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750725SB-LOS ANGELES - July 25, 1975 - 26:27 Minutes

Nitāi: "O inhabitants of Vaikuṇṭha, you are all sinless, but those within this material world, they are all karmīs acting piously or impiously. Both kinds of activities are possible for them because they are contaminated by the three modes of nature and must act accordingly. One who has accepted a material body cannot remain inactive, and it is inevitable for one acting under the modes of nature to be sinful. Therefore all the living entities within this material world are punishable."

Prabhupāda:

sambhavanti hi bhadrāṇi

viparītāni cānaghāḥ

kāriṇāṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sti

dehavān na hy akarma-kṛt

(SB 6.1.44)

So dehavān we have explained several times. Deha means the body, and vān means one who possesses. Asty arthe vatup. This vat-pratyāya is affixed when there is the meaning of possessing. Therefore Bhagavān. Bhāga means opulence, and vān means one who possesses. That is Bhagavān. So same thing, in the same process: dehavān. Dehavān, every one of us, dehavān. The dog is also dehavān; he has got body. I am also dehavān, every one of us.

So anyone who has got this material body, he cannot stop even for a moment working something. Na hy akarma-kṛt. This is the nature. He must do some. . . Just like child. Child is always restless. Similarly. . . "Child is the father of man." One who becomes father, the same restlessness, because that is the nature. Na hi dehavān akarma-kṛt. So if you are not engaged in good work, then you must act badly. That is natural. You have to work. Therefore idle brain is devil's workshop. If you are sitting idly, then brain also will work, mind also will work. The bodily function will go. So if you don't engage yourself in good work, then you must be engaged in bad work. And if you are not engaged in good work and if you are engaged in. . . There are two things, good or bad. So in one of them we must be engaged.

So if we are not instructed or trained up to act in good work, then we must be doing bad work. Bad work means māyā and good work means God. There are two things: God and māyā. If we do not act in godly situation then we must be acting in māyā's clutches. That is explained in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta in a very simple verse, haiyā māyāra dāsa, kari nāna abhilāṣa: "As soon as I become servant of māyā, then I shall create so many rascaldom in the name of philosophy and science." This is going on. So-called philosophy and science means all rascaldom, bad work. It is very challenging word, but this is the fact. If we do not. . . Take, for example, there are so many scientists, so many philosophers and so many hippies also, LSD men. Why this has happened? Because there is no good engagement. Some are passing in the name of so-called scientist and so-called philosopher, and some of them are hippies, but all of them are engaged in bad, asat. Asat and sat. Sat means permanent, and asat means temporary.

So we must know what is our constitutional position. That we do not know. We are sat, eternal; therefore we shall act in such a way that will benefit my eternal life. That is sat. Therefore the Vedas instruct, asato mā sad gamaḥ: "Don't be engaged in temporary activities, bodily. . ." Bodily necessities means temporary. If I am child, my body is of a child's body, then my necessities are different from my father's necessities. So everyone is engaged in bodily necessities. Therefore it is said, dehavān na hy akarma-kṛt. And kāriṇāṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sti. Infection. We have got this practical understanding. If your body infects some disease, then you have to suffer. And if your body remains uninfected, unaffected by any poisonous . . . then you remain healthy. Therefore it is said, sambhavanti hi bhadrāṇi viparītāni ca anaghaḥ. Viparītāni. Viparī means just opposite. Sambhavanti bhadrāṇi. One is acting in auspicity, and one is acting viparītāni, just the opposite, inauspicity. In this way we are becoming entangled, life after life. Karinam guṇa-sango 'sti.

In other place it is said, karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1): "As we are acting auspicious or inauspicious, by higher supervision, higher consideration, judgment, we are getting different body." Otherwise why there are so many varieties of body? This is the cause. One is getting auspicious body, one is getting inauspicious body, but there is one opportunity that. . . If you want to change materially your auspicious or inauspicious position, that cannot be done. It is fixed up. It cannot be done otherwise. Suppose a man has got a nice body; a dog has got inferior body. You cannot change the. . . Bodily, you cannot make a man dog or a dog man. That is not possible. But spiritually you can do. Spiritually, a bad man or bad dog even can be elevated to the highest perfection.

Therefore the conclusion is if you act spiritually, then it is bhadrāṇi, or auspicious. If you act materially, on the bodily concept of life, that is inauspicious. This is the conclusion. And that is being watched by the authorities, as we have already explained, the witnesses. God is the original chastiser or awarder, but there are so many witnesses—that we have already discussed—sūryaḥ agniḥ khaṁ marud devaḥ somaḥ. Everywhere it is thoroughly watched. So we must be very careful, that we have got this human form of body—how to act? The act means first of all you know what is your position. That is the first instruction in the Bhagavad-gītā, that "Your position is that you are not this body. Your position is that you are the proprietor of the body; you are spirit soul." So if people are not educated on this understanding that the soul is different from body, that is. . . The beginning of education is wrong. Therefore whatever further advancement of so-called education is wrong, because the basic principle is wrong.

So the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement means they want to educate people, rectifying the basic principle of misconception: "I am body." "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am fat," "I am thin," "I am black," "I am white"—all bodily conception. This has to be removed first of all. So the śāstra says that if one is in the bodily concept of life, then he is no more better than an animal. No better than an animal. Yasyātma-buddhiḥ kunape tri-dhātuke (SB 10.84.13), we have discussed many times. This bodily concept of life should be first of all removed. We must be enlightened. Otherwise, if we act on the bodily concept of life, then—not bhadrāṇi, not auspicious—everything is inauspicious, viparītāni. Sambhavanti hi bhadrāṇi viparītāni ca anaghaḥ, kāriṇām. Kāriṇām means one who is working. Nobody is. . . Because dead stone, that is sitting idly, but any . . . even a small ant, it is also working. That is the difference between matter and the spirit. So we cannot understand this difference, that what is the difference between matter and spirit. Why the big mountain does not move? Because it is dead matter. And a small ant, it moves. Why it is so? That is the difference between matter and spirit. Why you are misunderstanding that "The spirit is also matter; it is coming from chemical"? This miseducation is going on, that spirit is also chemical composition, although I cannot experiment it by mixing chemical, producing. . .

So under this misconception of life we are simply acting inauspiciously. Why inauspiciously? Because we are working blindly. We do not know what is my next life, or we do not believe in next life. But you believe or not believe; next life is there. As the child has his next life, the boy has his next life, the youth has his next life, similarly, the old man has got his next life. You believe or not believe; you have to accept next life. Vāsāṁsi jīrṇāni yathā vihāya (BG 2.22). This is real education. You have to accept the next life. Now, what kind of next life you will get, you have to prepare in this life. That is auspicious. That is bhadrāṇi. And if you don't prepare for the next life, irresponsible. . . Just like a street boy does not take education because he has no idea of next life. But his father, his mother is anxious that "My son's next life, future life, will be spoiled if he does not take education." They are anxious. Similarly, the father and the mother, the guru, the friend—everyone should be actually well-wisher of his friend, dependent, when he gives spiritual education. Then he is friend. Otherwise they are enemy. Pitā na sa syāj jananī na sa syāt (SB 5.5.18). The śāstric contraception means that "If you cannot educate your sons how to stop repetition of birth, then don't become a father, don't become a mother." This is śāstric. . . "Don't become a guru. Don't become so on, so on, well-wisher, if you cannot stop."

So how it can be stopped? Unless there is spiritual education, unless one is not spiritually enlightened, you have to undergo the process of birth, death, old age and disease. You may talk very highly and foolishly, but the process of nature, janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi (BG 13.9), that you cannot stop. That is. . . Therefore any education which does not give enlightenment on the subject matter of how to stop death, they are all foolish talking. That's all. This is the conclusion: not bhadrāṇi; abhadrāṇi. Sambhavanti bhadrāṇi viparītāni cānaghaḥ, kāriṇāṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sti. Guṇa-saṅgaḥ. Therefore the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is trying to give the association of goodness. There are three guṇas. Just like in a brothel they are giving the association of darkness, similarly, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is opening so many centers to give the facility to the people in general the association of goodness. That is the difference. Saṅgāt sañjāyate kāmaḥ. If you associate with persons addicted to so many drugs or brothel men, then you will become like that. And if you associate with the Kṛṣṇa conscious men, then you become Kṛṣṇa conscious; you understand what is your real position, what is the aim of life, how to stop birth, death, old age. This is the profit of Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. And actually, learned, educated circle, they are appreciating that "Government spends so much money for stopping the drug habit, but they have failed. But this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement have saved so many hippies and young men from this fallen condition of life." That is the practical way. Anyone who has got intelligence, they will see to it.

Therefore this movement should be encouraged. Especially I request my students that you push on this movement. Your country is very good. Let them become Kṛṣṇa conscious. Then everything will be bhadrāṇi, all auspicious, bhadrāṇi. Otherwise your so-called big, big motorcars will create abhadrāṇi, viparītāni. We don't discourage you to construct big, big cars, but it should be used for the kīrtana party to go to village to village. . .

Devotees: Jaya.

Prabhupāda: . . .not to go to the brothels and liquor shop. Then you are ruined. You can use it, all the facilities. The microphone should be used for spreading Kṛṣṇa consciousness, not talking nonsense. This, this should be this. . . Everything is good, provided it is used for good purpose. Nirbandhe kṛṣṇa sambandhe yukta vairāgyam ucyate. We are not such foolish person that "This is material, this microphone. We shall not touch it." No, we are not so fool. We are intelligent enough how to use it. That's all. That is Rūpa Gosvāmī's instruction:

prāpañcikatayā buddhyā

hari-sambandhi-vastunaḥ

mumukṣubhiḥ parityāgaḥ

phalgu-vairāgyaḥ kath . . .

(Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.2.256)

Prāpañcika means material, artificial abnegation or renouncement. The Māyāvādīs, they say, "No, no, it is material."

The other day we saw that Sushil Muni. Sushil Muni, they are Jains. According to Jain philosophy, they should . . . they do not use any vehicle from going this place to another place. They will go by walking. That is their principle. But we are not following that principle. We are preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness. . . Suppose if I have to come to your country, and if I say, "I will go by walking," (laughter) then my life will be finished (laughter) before preaching. We are intelligent. Now we have got this aeroplane. Take advantage of and go in three hours to America, speedy. That is our policy. Therefore sometimes people criticize us that we are accepting all material things, still, we are condemning material civilization. They accuse us. But they do not know that we do not distinguish matter and spirit. Anything which is used for Kṛṣṇa, that is spirit. This, this house, if you use for making a club, dancing club, that is material. And if this house is used for chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra and dancing, that is spiritual. That is the difference. Because actually everything is emanation from the supreme spirit soul, Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa says, bhūmir āpo 'nalaḥ vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4), apareyam. What you say material, that is also expansion of the energy of Kṛṣṇa. So actually it is not material. But when you use it for other purposes than Kṛṣṇa, that is material. You should know this philosophy very nicely.

Therefore Rūpa Gosvāmī said, prāpañcikatayā buddhyā hari-sambandhi. Īśāvāsyam idam sarvam (ISO 1). Everything has got relationship with God. We must know that, that nothing can exist without God. Therefore in other sense, everything is God. So everything is God, then how it is material? It is material when it is not used for God. This is material. And if it is used for God, Kṛṣṇa, then it is. . . Therefore abhadrāṇi and bhadrāṇi, two things, are to be distinguished. How? This is the process. Try to engage everything in God's service. Then it is bhadrāṇi. And as soon as it is being done for your sense gratification, then it is abhadrāṇi. Try to understand. Two things are there.

sambhavanti bhadrāṇi

viparītāni cānaghaḥ

kāriṇāṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sti

dehavān na hy akarma-kṛt

(SB 6.1.44)

Everyone has to work. Nobody can avoid work. But on account of ignorance, one works in darkness, and on account of light, or enlightenment, one works in light.

So we have to work in light. This is light working, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, bhakti. Bhakti means. . .

māṁ cavyabhicāriṇi

bhakti-yogena yaḥ sevate

sa guṇān samatītyaitān

brahma-bhūyāya kalpate

(BG 14.26)

There is said guṇa-saṅgaḥ: infected by the modes of material nature. But Kṛṣṇa says anyone, māṁ ca avyabhicāriṇi-bhakti-yogena, avyabhicāriṇi, without any stoppage, twenty-four hours, if one is engaged in devotional service, avyabhicāriṇi bhakti-yogena ya sevate, serving Kṛṣṇa, then he is no more in the guṇa-saṅgaḥ. Here it is said guṇa-saṅgaḥ, infection of the material qualities. So if one is twenty-four hours engaged in Kṛṣṇa's service, he is no more in touch with these three guṇas. Otherwise he will be in touch with the guṇas, different guṇas, and he will be infected, and you have to. . . Just like if you infect some disease, you have to suffer from that particular disease. This is going on.

So bhadrāṇi, auspicity or auspicious activities, is this, devotional service. Be engaged always, twenty-four hours, in devotional service. There we have got program, early morning, 4:30 to, up to 9:30 in the evening. This is all auspicious activities. We are giving chance people: "Come here and join this, in auspicious activity, so that you will be saved from this repetition of birth, death and old age."

Thank you very much.

Devotees: Jaya Śrīla Prabhupāda. (end).